Beginners
What will I learn?
You will learn reading, writing, speaking and listening to Chinese. By the end of this course you should be comfortable having daily life conversations, and using the 460 individual Chinese characters to compose a thousand phrases and sentences.
How is the course taught?
‘Zoom In Mandarin: Everyday Chinese for Beginners’ (written and published by Meridian Chinese Studies) is the course study book, and taught using the David Su’s revolutionary TDR Grammar System which simplifies and accelerates the language learning process.
How long is the course?
Courses run for 5 short terms in total 64 hours in 32 weeks, each weekly session lasts 2 hours and courses are run throughout the year. Regular slots can be booked for weekday classes held in the evenings at 18:45 to 20:45.
Can I join the course at any time?
Yes. Mecs always has a wide range of classes from beginners to high advance, so, you can definitely choose and join the level, which suits you at any time during the academic term. The tuition fee depends on the portion of the class you've taken.
Start with the text book of Zoom In Mandarin for Beginners
Our lively and friendly classes (5–10 students) are taught by senior teachers and native-speaking teaching assistants.
Beginners courses are divided into 5 terms
1. Beginners: Term 1 (Unit 1- 4, book 1)
From absolute beginner to simple conversation and runs for 8 weeks. Term 1 gives you the basic tools and you can read 121 different sentences using only Chinese characters.
Fee £200
For the course during the weekday above, Meridian Chinese Studies often provides several packages of Free Tuition Class in weekday during the year 2012 for complete beginners. Please check the page of Mandarin Tuition Free for details, the first Special Package for Term 1 Free tuition starts on Mon 23rd Jan and on Sat 11th Feb 2012.
The same course also runs on Saturdays
Fee: £220
Dates Start: Saturday 14th Jan 2012 for 8 weekends
from 11:00 to 13:00 and
from 14:00 to 16:00
2. Beginners: Term 2 (Unit 5-6, book 1 & 2)
Term 2 will last for 6 weeks and give you new speech patterns, grammatical words, longer sentences and much more vocabulary. In the end, you can read another 115 sentences.
Note: after Term 1 and 2 in total 14 weeks 28 hours, at the end your level can take HSK* level I examination, which equals to European Foreign Language A1.
For 6 weeks
Fee: £155 for 6 weeks
Dates start:
12th Jan on Thu evenings 2012
29th Feb on Wed evenings 2012
*The new HSK is an international standardized exam that tests and rates Chinese language proficiency. It assesses non-native Chinese speakers’ abilities in using the Chinese language in their daily, academic and professional lives. The new HSK consists of a writing test and a speaking test, which are independent of each other. There are six levels of writing tests, namely from HSK (level I) to HSK (level VI). There are three levels of speaking tests, namely the HSK (beginner level), HSK (intermediate level), and HSK (advanced level). During the speaking test.
3. Beginners: Term 3 (Unit 7 - 8, book 2)
Term 3 will take another 6 weeks; you will know hundreds of sentences, including longer conversations, using around 50% of the vocabulary of the GCSE Chinese Exam in the U.K.
For 6 weeks
Fee: £155
Dates start: 23rd Feb on Wed evenings 2012
4. Beginners: Term 4 (Unit 9 - 10, book 2 & 3)
Into Term 4, learning for further 6 weeks, you will complete most of the elementary patterns, and around 75% vocabulary of the GCSE Chinese Exam in the U.K.
For 6 weeks
Fee: £155
Dates start: 12th Jan on Thu evenings 2012
5. Beginners: Term 5 (Unit 11 - 12, book 3)
For 6 weeks
Fee: £155
Dates start: 10th Jan on Tue evenings 2012
Note: after five terms in total 64 hours in 32 weeks, at the end of Term 5, your level can take HSK LEVEL 2 test, which is equivalent to European Foreign Language A2
Lower Intermediate Course(Unit 13 - 15, book 4)
For 12 weeks
Fee: £299
Dates start: 9th Jan on Mon evenings 2012
* Please note, besides the enrolling period at the start of each academic term, you can apply for the Course any time if you have learnt previously. After taking an assessment, you will be put into the level of class that suits your standard.
